kelly o'donnell there at the white house. it would seem as if the president of the united states was suggesting that the tanking oil prices is a tax cut for many americans, since theoretically the price of gasoline would come down, but the president didn't address there are a lot of folks watching and listening that have seen a significant chunk of their 401(k) wiped out over the past 48 hours. >> lower gas prices taken in isolation might be good news for workers and consumers, but in the bigger picture here, obviously there are many other concerns. i, too, believe there was more to the exchange with the president, so i'm not sure where the status of that tape is. we know that he was asked, for example, about reports that a brazilian official who was visiting mar-a-lago has been symptomatic or getting testing for coronavirus, someone that the president had direct contact with. and the president saying to reporters that he's aware of that and believes that person is being tested. but one of the questions that will follow is wh

further complicating negotiations, senator has tested positive for the virus kelly o'donnell has more> reporter: coronavirus gets personal for the u.s. senate kentucky republican rand paul announced he tested positive he's feeling fine and is in quarantine colleagues said paul used the senate gym, attended meetings and a group lunch. senators of both parties question their exposure. >> had lunch with rand, hope he's doing well. >> friend of the president >> he's been a great friend, always there when the country needed him and as you know, he just tested positive >> reporter: paul's diagnosis injects uncertainty in senate's ability to deliver on coronavirus economic relief. only senator to vote against first aid package a few weeks ago. leaders from both parties hunkered down this weekend in negotiations. >> this is a pretty solidly bipartisan proposal. >> reporter: democrats pushing for their priorities. >> workers first, not big corporations >> reporter: the broad proposal includes help for small businesses >> you'll get two weeks of cash flow to pay your workers >> reporter: a one-

trump did not even bring up the idea of quarantine >> kelly o'donnell at the white house, thank you.he president did use a rare wartime power to order auto maker gm and a ventilator company ventec to ramp up production of the desperately needed lifesaving devices he criticized the companies for moving too slowly tonight the ceo of ventec speaks in an exclusive interview. >> the commitment from gm >> reporter: he says general motors sent some of its engineers to his factory in washington state just last weekend >> they pledged to do this commitment to us at no cost gm as really entered this with the best of intentions >> reporter: that was yesterday before the president's press conference in which he ordered gm and ventec to get moving and produce more of the lifesaving machines invoking the rarely used defense production act >> we just were not getting there with general motors >> reporter: today we asked president kipal how the president's action yesterday would change things. >> we're moving as fast as we can we understand the urgency around this. we are moving full speed ahead. >>

kelly o'donnell has the latest on that. kelly, good morning to you. >> reporter: good morning, kristen. despite the president's reluctance, he's using the federal government as power to manufacture more ventilators and buy more where available the next three months. a tight timeline given the number of serious to supply states and allies. >> if we do not need them, that would be wonderful and we can help a lot of great people all over the world. we can help them live. >> bristling at demands mr. trump made his expectations known. >> i want them to be appreciative. if they aren't nice, i don't call. >> the president backed off his push to ease restrictions by easter sunday saying he will consult medical experts. >> life, safety, if we need more time, they're not going to have a problem waiting it out. >> the president was surrounded by republican leaders as he signed the largest relief package in u.s. history. democrats were not invited to attend. >> i want to thank republicans and democrats. >> today, president trump heads t

>> kelly o'donnell pressing the president tonight. thank you >>> after delays and frustrations coronavirus testing is finally beginning to ramp up in parts of the country. but there are long lines at some testing centers and many people who are suffering from symptoms say they still cannot get a test here's kathy park. >> reporter: tonight as coronavirus testing expands across the country the lines are growing. at this drive-thru location in colorado cars stretched down the road the demand so high officials closed early. >> are you going to gets tested? >> reporter: and at the center of new york's worst outbreak, new rochelle -- >> keep your windows up at all times. >> reporter: -- drivers were screened before they could enter. the state's mobile test site launched friday processing 150 cars test results expected in 24 to 48 hours depending on the patient's health and risk level >> the more tests we take, the more that number will go up. nobody believes there's only 500 cases of coronavirus in new york today we believe there are thous

jose >> kelly o'donnell at the white house. thank you very much. >>> the coronavirus has the world on edge. the spread of the disease creeping into even more countries causing major disruptions to everyday life. bill knee lneely reports from hard-hit italy. >> reporter: unprecedented action by south korea tonight. not just decontaminating cities but asking its entire population of 51 million to stay indoors. and reporting hundreds more cases of the virus today. in iran, anger at the highest death toll outside china and panic. a crowd setting fire to a clinic said to be treating virus patients an infected lawmaker, the latest to die. italy is the viral epicenter of europe. soccer matches today canceled the u.s. travel warning will hit its and south korea's economy. italy not only has the highest number of cases in the western world, but people from here spread the virus to mexico, brazil, nigeria and right across europe. 57 countries now confirming cases >> and i think this is a reality check for every government on the planet w

officials are responding to the outbreak, here's nbc's kelly o'donnell >> reporter: the vice president? >> well, there will be more cases, there's no question >> reporter: and secretary of health and human services. >> we're ramping up testing. >> reporter: spread the trump administration's message across sunday programs. while president trump tweeted about expanded screening for travellers involving certain high-risk countries. the president adding, they will also be screened when they arrive in america. while the state department has issued a range of guidelines on international travel to high-risk areas, mike pence said the u.s. is asking for specific help as flights depart countries with active coronavirus. >> do not travel to those affected areas in italy and in south korea. but we're also making that connected to a screening process that we've already initiated discussions with both countries. >> reporter: inside the u.s. administration officials say they do not recommend restrictions on travel within the country at this time but -- >> state or local public health offices, which

our kelly o'donnell pressed him on why >> reporter: facing a medical supplies crisis, the president hasm used but powerful authority, one we has discussed publicly since wednesday. >> we'll be invoking the defense production act just in case we need it. >> reporter: a 1950 korean war era law allows the federal government to order private industry to manufacture needed goods like medical masks, gowns and ventilators. with the government able to control where those supplies go. but president trump is holding off. >> you talked about the act, sir, but you have not yet compelled any company. why not? >> we have the act to use in case we need it, but we have so many things being made right now by so many they've just stepped up >> reporter: instead of ordering them the president is praising american businesses that volunteer to make supplies, which they can sell to any buyer. today the president did use his influence to promote potential but still untested drug therapy for coronavirus. >> we don't have much time you know, we have a lot of very sick people right now in hospitals all over the

kate. >> kelly o'donnell at the white house. thank you, kelly dr. john, the white house led us to believe yesterday today they would announce nationwide testing rolling out. it's not just that, it's in the states that are hardest hit. is that going help >> it's going to help. we're behind the curve a little bit. this would have helped two or three weeks ago. they're certainly making good movement and they need to continue that moment item to understand where the outbreaks are. >> all right the demand for medical care in the midst of this crisis being called an unprecedented challenge. hospitals are saying they're not ready, not enough equipment, or don't have enough personnel. one governor wants the military to step in eric mclaughlin has that part of the story. >> reporter: tonight in seattle, a healthcare system under strain. >> it's a new world for everybody, including people who work on the front lines. >> reporter: and across the country, concern hospitals in other cities aren't far behind >> it is going to be a wave. and it is going to be a wa

rastic impact daily lives of tens of millions >> kelly o'donnell at the white house. the spread of coronavirus is having a drastic impact on the daily lives of tens of millions of people overseas today the busiest museum in the world suddenly closed. it's more evidence of the effect of the virus on sports, commerce and culture. bill neely reports from hard-hit italy. >> reporter: the world's most visited museum the louvre in paris shut down because of the world's most contagious virus staff afraid, thousands locked out and worried. >> i'm going to try to stay healthy and happy and live my life >> reporter: from the world health organization today, more aggressive advice than from u.s. officials. advising anyone over 60 or with underlying conditions, that's hundreds of millions globally, to avoid crowded areas. >> we need to prepare for a potential pandemic day by day, we see the window of opportunity closing. >> reporter: in south korea another huge surge of infections the entire population urged to stay home. the capital's mayor leveling murder charges of the leader

here is kelly o'donnell. >> reporter: sunday marks the 11th white house briefing on coronavirus. with new details on the availability of testing. >> we're now in a new phase of testing. we will have 1.9 million of these high throughput tests available this week. >> reporter: with scenes like these around the country showing americans waiting for coronavirus screenings the trump administration called on major retailers to provide use of parking lot space to stage drive through testing sites. >> we're using the full power of the federal government to defeat the coronavirus, and we will do whatever it takes. i think we're doing really, really well. the worst is yet ahead for us. it's how we respond to that challenge. that's going to be determine what the ultimate end point will be this window will be important for us to stay ahead of this curve. >> reporter: friday in the rose garden, retail ceos said they're prepare to assist. >> we've been asked to make portions of our parking lot available in select locations in the beginning and scaling over time as supply increases >> reporter:

also kelly o'donnell at the white house. scott, let's start with you and the new cases we're hearing about in the state. >> reporter: sure. you mentioned 74. there are many here around seattle. one is a male in his 60s, hospitalized in renton in critical condition. he had underlying respiratory health conditions. and another male in his 60s in critical but stable condition at the virginia mason medical center. and the first death from covid-19 was here at the evergreen health facility. in all with these new cases according to the numbers coming out, we have a total of eight cases in washington state and another four under investigation. and in addition to that, about a mile away from here is the nursing facility where two people -- two of the cases were, one is a resident of the facility, one is a worker there, and another 50 people who have been exhibiting symptoms may have come into contact with them, and they too are under investigation. so we knew these numbers would increase, and that does seem to be the case. and washi

kelly o'donnell at the white house. to go back to what was said during the press conference, hans nichols was also present for the briefing. i want to turn to new york city. we have the first confirmed death from coronavirus here in new york, an 82-year-old woman from brooklyn passed away today. scott, what more can you tell us about that and about the state's response to this growing virus? >> reporter: hey there, david. that's right, state and city officials announced that the 82 year woman did pass away today. she has a history of lung disease, emphysema. she went into the hospital originally in early march, and that is just emblematic of what the state wants to do to increase testing to make sure that this doesn't happen a lot more. we mentioned yesterday that the governor opened up a new drive-thru testing facility up in new rochelle just a few miles north of the new york city city limits. they tested more than 250 people up there yesterday alone. that's the area in west chester county where there are more than 150

nbc's kelly o'donnell is at the white house with the very latest this morning. good morning. >> reporter: good morning. what we're seeing is the white house is asking americans and american businesses to comply with the new recommendations, but is not using the full force of law to order them to do so. one example is they are having construction companies to donate their masks that are used for industrial purposes to hospitals, but the president is not ordering manufacturers to increase production. they're simply asking them to step up. the president's pandemic response, part action and part aspiration. >> i sure as hell think we ought to give it a try. >> reporter: touting potential treatment, use of a malaria drug for coronavirus, but dr. anthony fauci urging caution. >> it was not done in a controlled clinical trial so you really can't make any definitive statement about it. >> reporter: using other authority, the president restricted border crossings from mexico and canada, extended the tax filing deadline from april to and to address critical shortages of m

that's kelly o'donnell at the white house. >>> now let's focus back on coronavirus. in california new restrictions and bans are in effect in several counties as the coronavirus cases surge. the l.a. times report, san mateo county just south of san francisco, placed limits on gatherings of 10 or more people and officially banned those of 50 or more. santa claira county the next county south on friday restricted gatherings of 35 or more and banned those of 100 or more. contra casta banned all nonessential events of 100 or more. sco scott cohen joins us from sunnyvale, california. what's going on there? >> reporter: as you can see, there's still plenty of traffic going on at this supermarket that we've been at all weekend. but putting it into perspective, as you said santa claira county has limited gatherings of more than 3,500 and banned -- they've been living with this for a little while now. there was the first county to be hit. they had their first coronavirus case back on january 31st. so they've had a chance to get used to this just a little bit. 114 cases now and

kelly o'donnell from the white house, how much longer, what does it mean? >> reporter: stunning and surprising announcement from president trump who had been talking about wanting to get the country back to work. today in the rose garden he told reporters that extended federal guidelines go until april 30th. doesn't believe the country will be back on track until june 1st this is at president who wanted the country back quickly. asked him if he was okay with this decision, he was told by doctors could be deaths exceeding a couple of million if there were not severe steps to mitigate that. even with potential for 100,000 deaths, believes the actions are necessary, asking public to remain at home through april. sobering words from a president who wanted to get back to normal. kate. >> thank you kelly. as the virus spreads globally, borders have shutting too. a nightmare for americans trapped in other countries. travelers who couldn't make it out quickly enough. >> reporter: tonight tens of thousands of americans are stranded overseas. in india there's chaos a

thank you kelly o'donnell and erin mclaughlin for us in california. coming up, senate minority leader chuck schumer apologizing for those comments he made about supreme court justices. we'll play that for you and we'll get more reaction to that breaking news about senator warren withdrawing from the race. we'll get that from senator bob casey of pennsylvania who will join me next. pennsylvania who l join me next the all-new silverado hd adds to the legendary capability of the strongest, most advanced silverados ever. with best in class camera technology and larger, more functional beds than any competitor. the only truck that can compare to a silverado is another silverado. truck month is the right time to get behind the wheel of the chevy silverado. now, get 0% financing for 72 months plus $500 dollars cash allowance on all silverado 1500 crew cab pickups. find new roads at your local chevy dealer. on all silverado 1500 crew cab pickups. here's another cleaning tip from mr. clean. cleaning tough bathroom and kitchen messes with sprays and wipes can b

. >> kelly o'donnell at the white house, thank you as always. >>> let's bring in nbc news contributor dr. vin gupta, an intensive care doctor working right now with coronavirus patients and a global health policy expert who sounded the alarm in 2018 that a pandemic was coming to the united states. dr. gupta, thank you very much for being with us this morning. we appreciate your time during a very busy time for you. let's start with at the end of this week, a long, difficult week for the country of where we are in terms of numbers, in terms of the trajectory of all this, in terms of whether or not social distancing is, in fact, having an impact in the positive. where do you see where we are right now? >> thanks, willie. giving us such an important platform. every expert in this field, whether -- from harvard, two days ago university of washington, university for health metrics, major universities have published forecasts saying this is going to get a lot worse. cases are going to climb, icu needs will get more urgent. we haven't seen the worst of it. it's getting worse, not better. cas

leigh ann caldwell is there, kelly o'donnell as well. both following new developments from both ends of pennsylvania avenue. david gura is at the new york stock exchange. this will be the nation's first containment zone, talk us through what that actually means and what people that live in that area can expect. >> reporter: that's right, ayman, there's lots of questions this morning. that containment zone goes into effect tomorrow and it's about one mile in radius. that means that all the large gathering spaces like schools, synagogues, churches, community centers will be shut down. people can travel in and out of that containment zones and smaller businesses like grocery stores and delis will remain open. people are stocking up. they're going to the grocery store and they're trying to limit contact. i want to introduce you to the mayor of new rochelle. when people think of containment zones, we understand the national guard is coming in, you think of big humvees, how will this look tomorrow? >> i appreciate that you were clear in your i

i see kelly o'donnell. they are going to be there to be asking the president some questions.etimes the president takes liberties to say the least. so our team is going to be here with me to be able to run down some of the things the president has said that we are not sure about, and either confirm them or let you know otherwise. we will be doing that through the course of this. in some instances, what we are going to do is let the information come out because there are -- the president often has the vice president there who has details about things that are happening that are not politicized. he often has dr. anthony fauci or dr. deborah birx with him with medical information and other times he will have the surgeon general or other experts who are actually delivering information. >> it looks like the white house coronavirus briefing is getting started. let us listen in to the briefing as it begins. ali velshi is having technical issues. so, as we are watching, this is a live scene in the rose garden. they have moved the briefing out of the briefing room and they're doing it

also joined by nbc's kelly o'donnell. kelly o. standing by for us there at the white house. dr. lena went, visiting professor of the george washington school of health is also with us and dr. linda doll, board certified ear, nose and throat doctor. everyone standing by. kelly o., let me start with you here at the white house. there has been a spike now, some 9,000 cases in this country, roughly 2,700 more cases than we had at this time yesterday. what can we expect to hear from the president and the task force? >> reporter: well, we expect, craig, the task force will talk about this being an anticipated effect of both how the virus has spread and the testing which gives us a better picture of where it is and what the latest numbers are. they have told us for days to expect a spike, and the spike is here. we have had some foreshadowing from the president about the fda which, of course, approves things like medicines, therapeutics, testing related to all sorts of parts of our health care system, and he has suggested that there would be some new information. so we don't have hard f

. >>> now to the white house with kelly o'donnell standing by for us. what is this about?> reporter: certainly the white house is looking at ways to try to address this and at the same time trying to find ways to calibrate the response. for example, we have seen the white house not authorizing a national lockdown, instead letting states make their decisions about asking people to stay home. it is asking americans to comply, asking american businesses to step up. we have not seen the president use the force of law to compel them to do so. some examples, urging construction companies to donate their industrial masks for hospital use. and asking businesses to ramp up production. but not ordering them to do so. the president's pandemic response, part action and part aspiration. . >> i sure as hell think we ought to give it a try. doctor touting use of a malaria drug. but dr. fauci urging control. >> are it was not done in a clinical trial so you can't make any definitive statement about it. >> reporter: using other authority, the president restricted border crossings from mexi

>> can i just say, kelly o'donnell once again giving a master class for us, young journalists, she'sl-star. >> she's holding her -- >> absolutely. asking fair questions. i think what that moment illustrated is a moment quite frankly that all of us in america are realize, we've gone from hand shakes to elbow bumps. that's where we are. in this week in particular and the administration going to be giving another briefing with dr. fouci at 5:00 p.m., talk is going to turn to free testing. >> kevin cirilli, thank you very much. >> yeah. >>> airport bottle necks at a time when you're supposed to be avoiding big crowds, they were crammed like saur dooenz. >> besides the health concerns, what's the economic impact of the ban? numbers next. ct of the ban? numbers next yes. it's the first word of any new discovery. but when allergies attack, the excitement fades. allegra helps you say yes with the fastest non-drowsy allergy relief and turning a half hearted yes, into an all in yes. allegra. live your life, not your allergies. you can't always stop for a fingerstick.betes with the freestyle li

. >> that was kelly o'donnell reporting. the coronavirus forcing sporting events to look dramatically different, at least in japan. japan's professional baseball teams playing preseason games. no one's allowed in. the move comes as the international olympic committee continues to monitor the situation before deciding the fate of the tokyo games this summer. it wants the ncaa to consider holding this month's march basketball tournament in arenas with no crowds. >>> now to making it in the bay. our extensive coverage of the bay area's housing crisis. the home supply is at its lowest point in seven years. the result is that buyers are going to extreme lengths to buy a home. they're putting up as much as 50% of the down payment, accepting the house as is, inspections needed. agents estimating more than 90% of the time there were multiple offers on homes for sale. >>> strange story here. politics driving a wedge between a hall of fame hip hop group. we told you earlier in the news crast performed at a rally tonight for bernie san

something else that was notable today, we heard our colleague kelly o'donnell press the president on production act. and what is actually happening with that, because there has been some confusion. the president did sign that earlier this week, but he hasn't actually invoked it despite hinting at that. he does want more companies to be doing things themselves as opposed to the government directing them to be helping with a lot of this equipment. so when kelly o'donnell pressed him on that he said he's using it as a backup option but he hasn't yet. and one thing i want to mention, the vice president made some news saying that he and his wife karen pence will be tested for coronavirus later this afternoon and that's after a staffer in the vice president's office did test positive, but the vice president says that neither he, nor the president came into direct contact with this person who says that he's only experiencing mild cold-like symptoms and is currently recovering. but just to show you how close this is and it seems to get nearer and nearer by the day, david. >> i'll turn to you

but what is interesting here is that my colleague kelly o'donnell just asked the incoming chief of staff under what authority the president might be considering this tristate quarantine, he said they are looking into and evaluating all the options, which indicates there might be a statute under which he could suggest this. this appears to come down to the states, and that was apparent a couple hours ago, when the president sort of floated this idea and said he would be talking to governor cuomo and some of the other leaders. when governor cuomo was asked about that in his daily press conference, he didn't seem to know what that meant or what the president was alluding to. a lot of gaps that need to be filled in there. this adds to the evolving time line that we've seen come from the white house. you remember just a few days ago, the president was talking about easter potentially for some of the country to reopen, that then became a little looser. mike pence referred to that as an aspirational deadline. some of his aids and 5/visors are telling the president not to attach some hard and fa

nbc kelly o'donnell is at the white house with more that angle.d morning. >> reporter: good morning. first update on the vice president. test results came back for mr. pence and his wife karen ande t a staffer in thee coronavirus. saturday, officials here said the national availability of tests has increased but they urge that tests be prioritized for hospitalized patients and health care workers to conserve masks and gowns and medical supplies the president is thinking about making need medical supplies i pressed the president why he has not used that defense act. he said it's not needed and praises businesses that are voluntarily manufacturing these masks and other supplies officials have been unable to say when shortages would be eased but acknowledged it may take weeks president trump is using his influence to launch a clinical trial in new york for patients already sick with the virus. now although there is no scientific evidence yet, the president says he believes specific medications approved for other illnesses should be given to very ill

let's go to the white house and kelly o'donnell. with a good day to you, my friend, there in front of the white house on a saturday morning, as always. we have the president, who has invoked this rarely used federal law to help fight the outbreak. tell me what this is all about. >> reporter: good morning, alex. despite early reluctance from president trump he is now using the federal government's power to force the manufacturer of additional ventilators and said he will buy more in the marketplace where available over the next three months. that is a tight timeline given the fact that critical illnesses continues to rise in hot spots around the country. president trump moved from talk to action on forced manufacturing of medical equipment. . >> ventilators are a big deal. >> reporter: after nine days of discussing the defense production act powers, friday the president finally used it when he says negotiations with general motors to build ventilators hit a roadblock. . >> we didn't want to play games. if they don't treat you right,

yesterday, nbc's kelly o'donnell asked the president about ordering factories to make supplies under a law called the defense production act. >> one of the things we're hearing from governors, they can't find supplies, and prices have gone up. you've talked about the act, but not yet compelled any companies. why not? >> we have so many companies making so many products. every product you mentioned, they stepped up. we were discussing it before. we never have seen anything like it, where they're volunteering, we want to make masks. >> let's discuss it with dr. lena wen, the former health commissioner of the city of baltimore. it has been a while since we spoke. good to talk to you again. >> nice to see you too, joshua. >> can i play one more clip from the governor's press conference. he was talking about this shortage and the role the federal government could be playing. listen. >> the federal government should nationalize medical supply acquisition. the states simply cannot manage it. this state cannot manage it, states all across the country can't manage it, states that are dealing

telling kelly o'donnell that he hopes he doesn't have to extend them.learly they may be rethinking that. >> incredible when you think of what measures some of the other countries have taken and how long they've had to endure them for, china, six to eight weeks. italy, 14 days. and the u.s. in the first week and the president may be reversing course. we'll talk about that in a few minutes. let me get your thoughts quickly. the fed announcing new measures with the hopes of trying to support the economy. it's not easing the markets this morning. >> reporter: investors have seen this void, this policy void open up in washington, d.c. they're watching what's happening between the white house and what's happening on capitol hill. and absent that, the fed has stepped in with monetary policy. what we saw today is incredible. you see the fed expanding its bond-buying and security-buying programs. the likes we haven't seen since 2008. but i think the standout thing beside that in the statement they issued this morning is what they're hoping to do for small busine

let's go to nbc's kelly o'donnell at the white house. we've learned that 59,000 americans have been tested. i guess we would get an update on that. it's been six weeks since the u.s. reported its first confirmed case of covid-19. what are we expecting today. do we have any clues what we'll get? >> reporter: we know the president has spoken to airline executives, set to talk to physicians and nurses today. we got hint from mark short chief of staff to the vice president who is the head of the task force saying we might learn more about what the department of defense will be doing today. there will be a wide range of questions to get to. among them, the availability of testing. the number you quoted is from yesterday. it stands to reason there would be a higher number today for the availability of americans who have been tested. again, what officials have been saying is it is not meant to be a surveillance or screening test, but meant for those who show active symptoms. one of the big questions is how do people find that, going through the

the president seemingly frustrated saying to the reporter kelly o'donnell, you know the answer to the question. you know it. fauci chiming in saying, you know, it could be days. all right. let me bring in some others here to help us understand all that we just witnessed. elizabeth cohen, art, let me ask you about, you know, the frustration that many localities have expressed. hospitals have expressed about getting access to vital supplies here. if they were listening to this press conference do they feel any more assured there will be access and availability will come soon? >> well, i have to say it depends on where you are. in the new york area for example no. they're already short. they're starting to see the surge. i'm getting lots of communications and calls and e-mails saying we don't have the equipment. the masks aren't here. they don't want to hear they'll be here in a week or a month. they need them now. there are some doctors already getting sick and so we're losing some of the work force. not that they're going to die. they are usually younger and in pretty good health but t

. >> and when pressed by our reporter, kelly o'donnell, about the danger, david jolly, of calling itoax and that the president's followers or believers will believe it's a hoax and then not take the necessary advice that they need to take, the president said he was talking about something else and democrats altogether. but a lot of the issue with a disease like this, an infection like this, is about trust in government, right? some of it's medicine, some of it's science, but a lot of it is trust in your government. we've got a president who took a sharpie to a map when dealing with a hurricane. you've got a president who says he's going to do things after gun massacres who doesn't do things about them. you've got a president who wouldn't deal with right-wing extremism in this country because he really wanted to believe it was something else. and we've not really been put to this test yet. i don't think coronavirus is existential, but it's certainly serious, and we haven't been put to the test where i need to know my government's telling me the best -- giving me the best information.

i am kelly o'donnell with nbc. >> [indiscernible] abc. >> one of the things we have been hearing frommall businesses, they had to close because of local requirements or whatever their circumstance. they didn't have the cash flow for keeping or retaining employees. obviously the way the passage was constructed, you were incentivizing people to hold on to their employees. what would you say to small business that was unable to keep on employees at how they could -- sec. mnuchin: you can hire the people back.

scheduledtrump is today, here is something else on his schedule, kelly o'donnell reporting that sourcesay the president will meet this afternoon with kim kardashian and alice maria johnson for three women that he recently pardoned. that maria johnson president trump granted clemency to suggested that he would want to hear their stories and he agreed. that according to kelly o .onnell the president is headed on friday to the great state of tennessee. the president saying that the usa stands with the people of tennessee 100%. the tornadoes were of record size and velocity. god bless your loved ones and all of the families affected. that was the president about 15 minutes ago talking about his trip coming up later this week. market opened up for the day a few minutes ago. it rose up sharply on wednesday and rebounded from the previous session. a surprise rate cut from the federal deserve to ease investors concerns over the coronavirus. it also adds that a strong showing from joe biden on super boost. was giving a that is from the street website. speaking of joe biden, when he was addressin

let's bring in right now nbc news kelly o'donnell. she was at the press conference yesterday in the white house. kelly, we're asking, of course, questions about these tests. they continue. the white house tried to answer some of the questions about the tests but bottom line, why didn't we get the world health organization tests? i understand that they said, oh, they don't reach our standards. well, they certainly reached the south korea's standards and helped them bend that curve. why can't we get some of those to supplement our lack of test something why can't individual states do the same thing? >> part of what we're all learning, joe, are some of the bureaucratic steps that are involved in this. we've asked in a couple of these briefings about the world health organization test, and the most fulsome answer we had so far came yesterday. the president stepped aside from the lectern and let two of the experts on the frontline of this, admiral jarreau in charge of testing, and their answer to this is that the world hith organization pro

. >> now we're talking 1929, so let's take you to the white house where kelley o'donnell is standing by. kelly, the president says he wants to send check to say people who are struggling, but here's the thing, we have no idea how long this is going to go on. is he looking to pay people indefinitely? >> reporter: we don't know about indefinitely, but the urgency the white house says the president recognizes along with both presidents and democrats, is trying to get checks within the next month. the secretary of treasury said perhaps as quickly as two weeks, though that mechanism seems to be hard to identify where they could get a cash payment to individuals, means tested to some degree. we're waiting for the thresholds, and what ham. congress will have to ultimately finalize the package. the president would have to sign it into law, but looking at ways to trigger, perhaps through the i.r.s., some in many cases has people's direct deposit information, things like that, to infuse american families with some money. does this replace everyone's income? no. it's not intended to do that, but part of

that's the white house briefing room, where we find kelley o'donnell as well, who awaits the vice president's arrival. kelly, do we have any time frame -- our e.p. said a couple minutes? >> reporter: yeah, we were just given the two-minute warning. we're here in the briefing room. one of the big developments is we were greeted by the white house medical's office and we each had our temperature taken. it is not social distancing by any imagination, though it is sparsely filled today, in all years i've been covering white houses, it's the fewest that i've seen for a principal like a vice president. the president was in attendance at the meeting this morning. we don't know if he will choose to take part. the vice president is expected here to give us an update, where things stand, i certainly would expect discussion of the house bill passed overnight and where that stands as it moves to the senate. as everyone is trying to grapple with our changing lifestyle as we deal with preparations and the reality of the coronavirus and what it means for families, people working. obviously those patients who will be teste

latest right now kelley o'donnell is at the white house, josh letterman on capitol hill, shannon is in d.c., stephanie ruhle, and natalie azar will join me as well. to you, kelly, first of all. what do we expect today, and we have not yet, however, the president said, see you tomorrow that of course is a vice president leading it. other top officials who have now become very familiar to the american people here over the last few hours at the white house. so they've been doing meetings behind the scenes, preparing the latest information, and then we would expect the scheduled time now for this public briefing is now 12:30. we've been 208d to expect updates on areas like testing, and how u.s. manufacturers are taking part in some of the needed supplies. those are, of course, key topics on everyone's minds as governors around the country are saying they're having a hard time locating masks and ventilators, gowns and other equipment needed for medical personnel. in addition, we'll be asking questions about where things stand with the rampup of testing that's occurred over the last many days as more tests have become available. and we'll look for all the other key

i am kelly o'donnell with nbc. >> [indiscernible] abc. >> one of the things we have been hearing frommall businesses, they had to close because of local requirements are -- they didn't have the cash flow for retaining employees. obviously the way the passage was constructed, you were incentivizing people to hold on to employees. what would you say to business -- >> you can hire the people back. the treasury department and sba has in working around-the-clock. we have a program up and running, on friday, where the existing sba lenders and banks, -- theynions, contact will be able to make eight weeks of workers' salary plus additional money for overhead. if you let workers go, you bring back workers. for every worker you have the portion of the loan is forgiven. all small business, half of the private payroll, go back and higher your workers because the government is paying you to do that. >> do you get a sense that the president's decision would be social distancing steps need to be in effect for a longer time frame -- how do you see that impacting the return to an economy going forward

i am kelly o'donnell with nbc. >> [indiscernible] abc. >> one of the things we have been hearing from small businesses, they had to close because of local requirements or whatever their circumstance. they didn't have the cash flow for keeping or retaining employees. obviously the way the passage was constructed, you were incentivizing people to hold on to their employees. what would you say to small business that was unable to keep on employees at how they could -- sec. mnuchin: you can hire the people back. the treasury department and sba has been working around-the-clock. we will have a program up and running on friday where not only the existing sba lenders and banks, but credit unions, fintech, will be able to make loans. those will be able to make eight weeks of workers' salary plus additional money for overhead. if you let workers go, you bring back your workers. for every worker you have the portion of the loan is forgiven. so i encourage all small business -- that is about half of the u.s. private payroll -- go back and hire your workers because the government is paying you to